Until relatively recently, the materials and practices connected with the burial of the dead have resisted the application of technology. Primarily, this has been a result of the solemnity and traditional conservativeness with which the funeral ceremony is viewed in the Western World. However, the traditional character of burial procedures and the expense connected with them have become an increasingly serious problem, whose solution grows more urgent every day.
For example, in the case of burials, large tracts of land are devoted to cemeteries, where the land might better be used for housing, industry or even agricultural purposes. For this reason, the cost of a burial place has risen sharply and cremation has become more popular. However, even cremations, which are relatively economical, are still quite expensive. This is because of the fact that the ceremony still requires a casket with all of its associated decorative appurtenances. These are all prepared by conventional techniques which require the expenditure of extensive handworkmanship and traditional materials. Most importantly, however, the casket is used only once and then it is destroyed by being burned with the body.
This intransigence to change has rendered the funeral ceremony expensive in comparison to other things that have become more economical over the years as a result of the efficiencies provided by the application of technology. Moreover, the high cost associated with funerals is far from unnoticed, and, in recent years, has become the object of mounting public concern. As a response to this concern, the multi-element casket with disposable insides and a permanent facade was developed. Such a device is shown in my earlier U.S. Pat. No. 4,063,337, entitled "Multi-element Casket," the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference. In accordance with the disclosure of that patent, the casket comprises a container bottom which is configured and dimensioned to contain a suitable bedding material and the deceased. The container is covered by a facade in the form of an outer casket shell. This casket shell is placed over the container bottom and supported together with the container bottom on a bottom support member, thus giving the appearance of a conventional casket. When the deceased is to be cremated, the facade is removed and the container bottom and the bedding within it, together with the deceased is covered with a cover member and sent to the crematory. The removable casket shell is thus not destroyed and can be reused during another funeral ceremony.
In accordance with the practice in U.S. Pat. No. 4,063,337, an unused container bottom together with an unfilled mattress, other disposable elements and a pillow are shipped within a container, which also doubles as the top cover for covering the container bottom during shipment to the crematory. When it is desired to use the inventive casket, the mattress must be filled with a suitable filling material and then placed within the container bottom. However, this presents several problems. Primarily, it is difficult to fill the mattress in such a manner that it appears to be smooth and level. It was also a problem and expense to obtain appropiate filling material.
In accordance with the present invention, improved disposable components, and in particular an improved mattress, adapted for use in conjunction with a casket facade are provided. The new arrangement is convenient to use, economical and completely self-contained and thus sacrifices none of the advantages of my earlier multi-element casket.